Sermonets

——

Seimonets

"Take care that you judge no life by external evidences,

The sources lie so deep that only the loving, sympathetic,

helpful eyes of the Father may penetrate so far. And some-

times the loveliest flowers of development are hidden, for the

time being, in an outer envelope as unattractive as the

screen of the pond-lily, pushes its way into bloom

before it

and fragrance. Frequently the golden-hearted, the most

beautiful characters, have a season of forcing through such

bitterly hard conditions, that the stress may very easily

awaken repugnance in the minds of those observers who do

not understand."

"In time to come all the people of the nation will be col-

lege graduates. Must we not then as now eat, dress, have

places of shelter and methods of keeping clean? The old

idea, and the idea which prevails to some extent now, that

a man with a college degree cannot take up one of the so-

called common tasks is leading the nation to civil strife. We

must teach from the beginning that there is dignity in so-

called common tasks, just as in the professional tasks.

"There is no more divinity in looking at the stars or heal-

ing the sick than in hoeing a row of potatoes. We must get

the idea of industrial education into the grade schools and

begin there to overcome some of the false ideas which now

prevail about the common tasks of life." Dr. John A. Widtsoe.

We stand alone and as it were blindfolded, surrounded

upon all sides by unknown thresholds, afraid to hope, afraid

to fear, knowing only this, that at each forward step the

doors are opened for us; ways are made, our burdens are

lifted by some great unknown law or power whose purpose

we are powerless to fathom. And here upon this threshold wt

wait for the doors to open, feeling that the load is too heavy,

helpers too few, sometimes discouraged, when our grief is

strong, and our joy weak, and years and days are so long.

And yet we know that the changeless laws of the Almighty

will come to our relief, and good will take the place of ill;

and knowing this, the words, "Not as I will" grow sweet

and still .sweeter each time our lips or our hearts repeat them.

And when this blessed thought steals over us like a whis-

pered voice to bless and calm all the loneliness and unrest

of our souls, we feel to say, even more and more earnestiy,

knowing that we but follow One who has trodden the path

before, "Not our will but Thine be done." George D. Kirby.